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Casting Fishing Reel

I just bought a spin casting reel with the line set up in the spool. I dont know how to set it up to where i can go fishing with it. When ever i reel it in, it gets tangled up on the bail and everywhere else. Can someone walk me through where i’m suppose to put the line so i can go fishing. Thank you.

There are a couple things going on here. First, you may have some inexpensive monofilament line on the reel, and if it came with the reel it has been wrapped on there for who knows how long. So, it has a lot of what they call memory — it wants to stay in the shape of the reel. When you cast, the line stays all curled up like a spring.

Second, you might not have a good feel for this outfit, and you may be allowing slack to develop as you cast and retrieve. Sounds like you might be a little bit inexperienced.

Now, even though your gear is acting like it doesn’t work, you can easily correct these problems. As to your line memory problem, you can do a few different things. For one thing, you could do nothing — the line will relax with use. The more times it straightens out and gets in water, the more it will settle down. Each time you go fishing, make as long a cast as you can and wet the line — this will help lube and relax the line. Another thing you can do is replace the “stock” line with some better line with less memory — go to a sporting goods store or a tackle shop and they’ll recommend and install some good line for you. Should cost 5 bucks or less.

As to your slack problem, you’ve got to get some practice under your belt. When you’re spincasting, slack is your enemy, so always be watching for it. Keep the line tight between your hook and the winding groove of your bail. The weight of your bait and/or the resistance of your retrieve should be enough to maintain this slight tension — I don’t mean the kind of tight you get with a fish on, just enough tension to keep your line from bunching up. Also, close your bail with your hand — don’t let the cam in the reel close it. Letting the bail close when you reel will often throw a little loop into the line that then gets wound under the incoming line, and that’s no good. Open-face spincasting reels require a lot of attention. You can’t just cast and forget. However, you’ll get better and you’ll get to know your equipment really well.